Slugging the slugs

Ugh Slugs
It looks like another round of very wet weather is on us and there is one critter that loves “the wet” …slugs. Slugs are basically snails without shells and enjoy munching on a wide variety of garden plants.

They go after lots of ornamental and vegetable plants.Here’s an eft of the Eastern Spotted Newt meeting a slug. It may look like forbidden forest love but the slug was not actually kissing the newt but tasting it. The relaxing newt moved away when things started getting beyond the tasting stage.

In the past slugs were a difficult garden pest to control.
At one time there was only one bait made and the active ingredient was metaldehyde. Metaldehyde was nasty stuff and was for use around ornamental crops but never vegetables, fruits or berries. It is also toxic to animals so I never even considered using it. Metaldehyde has now been removed from the market…thank goodness!

There were also a variety of “old school” slug control techniques.

Soapy Water
One option was plucking and drowning the slugs in soapy water. You’d need to wear gloves since slug slime isn’t something that you can wash off easily.

Beer
There was also the dish sunk into the ground and filled with beer. The idea was that the slugs are attracted to the beer (true) and would drop into it and drown. This method never worked well for me and seemed like a terrible waste of beer.

Grapefruit Rinds
Another method was placing grapefruit rinds upside down in the sluggy area. The slugs are attracted to the grapefruit rind and you’d find them under there in the morning and then drown them. It worked but you’d need dozens of grapefruit rinds if you wanted to catch enough slugs to make a difference.

I never had much success with any of these methods in a year like the one we’re having this year.

Finally a slug control that works.
The market pressure for a safe slug control finally led to a natural mineral -based slug control that is not only very effective but is totally safe to use in the berry patch and vegetable garden. It is iron phosphate.

At Hewitt’s it is called Slug Magic made by Bonide.

This stuff works great and is harmless to dogs, cats and all the wildlife except slugs. You just sprinkle it around (according to the instructions on the package of course) and the slugs actually prefer it to the plants. It works fast too. Sprinkle it on in the evening (slugs feed at night) and by the next night you won’t see slugs around. It may take them a day or two to die but, once they nibble a little Slug Magic, they stop feeding and crawl away to die. I could almost feel sorry for them…nah! Thanks for the read.